2026 Founders' Fellows Class
Ruba Abukhdeir (University of Baltimore)
Afsana Alam (University of Massachusetts—Boston)
Nina Alvandipour (University of Arkansas at Little Rock)
Selina Ayittah (Georgia Southern University)
Sheldon Brennemann (University of Nebraska at Omaha)
Juwon Chung (Indiana University Bloomington)
Joseph S. Conteh (University of New Mexico)
Riley Crain (CSU Channel Islands)
Jan Manuel Cubero Jiménez (Roberto Sánchez Vilella Graduate School of Public Administration)
Charita Dailey (University of Nebraska at Omaha)
Clement Damoah (Arizona State University)
Ofek Edri-Peer (University of Haifa)
Ranya El Alaoui Moad (Abdelmalek Essaadi University)
Shernica L. Ferguson (Jackson State University)
Canyu Gao (Rutgers University—Newark)
Liliana Deyanira González Viveros (National Autonomous University of Mexico)
Areeba Hashmi (Pace University)
Meri Hovsepyan (Florida State University)
Calaia Jackson Franco (University of Delaware)
Sina Jangjoo (Florida State University)
Amy Kang (Carnegie Mellon University)
Christopher Kaplan (City of Colorado Springs)
Stephanie King (University of Central Florida)
Rebekah Lankford (University of Georgia)
Alyssa Taylor Lavalle (University of La Verne)
Steve McKnight (Missouri State University)
Eloy H. S. Oliveira (University of Texas at Austin)
Heather Shurtliff (University of Kansas)
Tomas Soto-Jara (Rutgers University—Newark)
Ana Luiza Ferreira Terra Pinto (Florida International University)
Rylyn Williams (University of Massachusetts—Amherst)
Lin Xu (University of Hong Kong)
Isaac Kwabena Yeboah (Virginia Commonwealth University)
Mashal E-Zehra (University of Illinois Chicago)
Zane Zupan (University of Vermont)
The 2026 Founders' Fellows will receive a complimentary 2026 Annual Conference registration, a year-long mentorship with a seasoned practitioner or senior scholar and professional development opportunities throughout their year as a Fellow.